Back-to-school preparation is a busy, time-consuming, and sometimes overwhelming time of year for everyone involved in education. Parents are busy trying to get clothes and supplies for their children back to school. Teachers are making plans for the new school year. Coaches are preparing for upcoming seasons, ensuring their players know practice times, and completing their schedules for the upcoming year.
Back-to-school time is busy for administrators as well. All of the previously mentioned educational stakeholders and many more take their lead from the school administrator. Administrators must be proactive and well-organized for the benefit of everyone involved. With this said, let’s highlight a few areas administrators need to focus on to ensure a smooth school opening.
Communicating With Parents, Teachers, and Community
The key to quality administration is excellent communication. This fact is abundantly true as we head back into school. Parents and the community need to know a plethora of information before that first day of school. The administrator needs to inform all stakeholders what the first school day will be. Additionally, the administrator is the leader in getting out things like bus schedules, what time school starts and ends, what car rider procedures are, how the school will receive/update student demographics, school calendar, and athletic schedules, just to name a few.
This information should be imparted to parents and other stakeholders in as many ways possible in your community. Local newspapers, television stations, radio stations, and all social media outlets the school participates in. By using these outlets, you should saturate your entire community with pertinent information and begin this information flow well before school begins.
Teachers must also be given as much information before their arrival for the first day of professional development as possible. The more information you can provide teachers prior to their first day, the more prepared they will be. Teachers need to be made aware of schedule changes that will have them teaching new to them courses. Teachers should receive their information through the above resources, email attachments, and text messages. Additionally, teachers should be made aware of the upcoming professional days and what that schedule will look like.
Always tell your teachers that you want them to have as much “work in your room time” as you can give them. You must have those meetings but try to limit them pursuant to time. Have teacher’s schedules, student rosters, crisis manuals, classroom materials, teacher handbooks, and any important information ready for them on day one. Be prepared to be excited and upbeat as you welcome your teachers back on that first day.
Creating a Positive School Climate
Creating a positive school climate should begin with and continue through every piece of information you send out into the community and to your teachers. Make sure that all information is positive and shows an evident desire on your part to make this upcoming school year better than any before it. If some of your information is not necessarily positive, try to briefly explain in a positive way why you are doing what you are doing. Always be positive and show a genuine desire in all communication to show progress in all educational needs as they arise.
Managing School Resources
During the summer months is when you should try to do renovations, capital improvements and facelift improvements. Nothing shows progress more than new and fresh around the school. A fresh coat of paint, replacing old worn-out blinds and waxing those floors always puts a positive face on the new school year. Celebrating a new gymnasium or a new educational wing with a dedication ceremony always sets a positive tone.
In managing these resources, ensure you have time to finish a project or plan to work around that area until it is complete before you start a project. Above all, make sure your financial resources are available before starting a project and strive to stay within budget. Nothing shows better fiscal management than coming in “under budget” and celebrating that fact.
Promoting Student Achievement
As those ever-present student achievement scores begin to come in over the summer, have a plan for imparting this information to the stakeholders. Be prepared to celebrate a great achievement. Take advantage of every opportunity to celebrate student achievement. Again, use your community and social media resources to get the word out when success has been achieved.
Also when achievement is not where you hoped it to be, find a positive way to impart this knowledge as well. Make sure all stakeholders are aware that you are open an honest regardless of student achievement outcomes. When the outcomes fall short, be prepared to impart the information and have a plan going forward to reach the intended goals. By being open, honest, and ready to take steps toward improvement, you have a much better chance of gaining community trust and support.
Back-to-school time is busy for everyone. As the administrator, everyone is counting on you to be the “go-to” person for everything school-related. Start early in the summer and stay on top of things. Make sure everything is done as early and as well as possible. Remember, everyone is looking to you as the leader. Be that leader that they can count on. Also, remember the staff you have hired around you are there to help you accomplish these tasks. Entrust your co-workers to do the job you have entrusted them to do. Remember, all of these people are looking to you to lead them. So, finally, put a smile on your face and lead them by being the best you can be every day.
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